Choose the Right Synonym for temerity

temerity, audacity, hardihood, effrontery, nerve, cheek, gall, chutzpah mean conspicuous or flagrant boldness. temerity suggests boldness arising from rashness and contempt of danger.
had the temerity to refuse audacity implies a disregard of restraints commonly imposed by convention or prudence.
an entrepreneur with audacity and vision hardihood suggests firmness in daring and defiance.
admired for her hardihoodeffrontery implies shameless, insolent disregard of propriety or courtesy.
outraged at his effronterynerve, cheek, gall, and chutzpah are informal equivalents for effrontery.
the nerve of that guy
has the cheek to call herself a singer
had the gall to demand proof
the chutzpah needed for a career in show business

Did You Know?

When it comes to flagrant boldness, temerity,audacity,hardihood, and effrontery have the cheek to get your meaning across. Of those synonyms, temerity (from the Latin temere, meaning "blindly" or "recklessly") suggests boldness arising from contempt of danger, while audacity implies a disregard of the restraints commonly imposed by convention or prudence. Hardihood implies firmness in daring and defiance, and effrontery suggests a shameless disregard of propriety and courtesy. If you're looking for a more informal term for a brash attitude, you might consider nerve,cheek,gall, or chutzpah.

Examples of temerity in a Sentence

He defeated giant corporations—the auto industry, big pharma—back when no one else was even trying to; he had the temerity to believe that fighting for safety and quality and transparency was a quintessentially American thing to do.— Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Feb. 2007A wisp of a kid (six feet, 160 pounds) with the temerity to buzz pitches up and in to Barry Bonds, Hudson has a bit of Pedro in him. — ESPN, 24 July 2000 … all the while you're balancing your two prevailing interests: recording her words to later use against her—because, she, too, had the temerity to be relatively famous and attractive (with a master's from Penn)—while also, more pressingly, trying to get invited back to her apartment.— Dave Eggers, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, 2000
He was punished for his temerity.
she had the temerity to ask my boyfriend if she could go out with him should he and I ever break up

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'temerity.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.